India has 271 million fewer poor people in a decade
What's the story
India has halved its Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI)- an index that looks beyond poverty and takes into account deprivations in health, education, and living standards - from 54.7% to 27.5% in just a decade. According to the MPI 2018, released by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative, India has seen 271 million fewer poor people between 2005 to 2016.
The Stats
364mn Indians are still deprived of basic facilities: Report
The report says, "Despite the massive gains made in reducing multidimensional poverty, 364 million Indians continue to experience acute deprivations in health, nutrition, schooling, and sanitation." The report also suggests that traditionally marginalized groups, in terms of castes, religions, etc., are still the poorest though they have seen the biggest reduction in the MPI between 2005-06 to 2015-16.
Is it?
Development is reflection of Modi's 'Sabka Sath, Sabka Vikas': UNDP
"The MPI demonstrates the tremendous strides India has made, and continues to make, in reducing poverty. It is especially encouraging that traditionally disadvantaged groups are catching up the fastest," the UNDP's Country Director Francine Pickup said in a statement released late on Thursday. "This sustainable development is also reflected in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's development pledge of Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas," Pickup added.
Twitter Post
Here's Pickup's official tweet
In 10 years, #India nearly halved its number of multidimensionally poor - a truly massive gain. The #MPI2018 tells us who is multidimensionally poor, where they live, how they're deprived. @UNDP @HDRUNDP @ASteiner @OphirGottlieb @sabina_alkire @HaoliangXu https://t.co/TLRHG1ZhZc
— Francine Pickup (@f_pickup) September 20, 2018
The Opposition reacts
2005-06 to 2015-16 period falls mainly under UPA government: Chidambaram
However, Congress leader P Chidambaram pointed out that the decade cited in the report falls mainly under UPA's regime. "Of those 10 years, the UPA was in the government for 8 years. For the BJP government, its bloggers and bhakts, every problem is a 'legacy' issue. Wish to remind them that lifting 27.1-crore people out of poverty is also a 'legacy' issue," he said.
Twitter Post
"8 out of these 10 years were under UPA regime"
Of those 10 years, the UPA was in the government for 8 years.
— P. Chidambaram (@PChidambaram_IN) September 21, 2018
Information
The 'multidimensionally' poor Indian states
In India, around 196 million MPI poor people, who account for over half of the multidimensionally poor, live in these four states - Bihar, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, and Madhya Pradesh. Meanwhile, Delhi, Kerala, and Goa have the lowest incidence of multidimensional poverty.